Sesame Street Cake Pops

Speaking of cake balls, my Mount Everest.

Sesame Street Cake Pops by Bakerella...my new hero :-D





Photo by Bakerella

Around the Internet

New fad in baked treats: Cake Balls

New fad in healthy eating: The Nordic Diet

New explanations for old conundrums: Why Does Time Fly By As You Get Older?

New (to me) kitchen toys that I want: Amish Double Pie Carrier Basket With Tray And Lid

And finally...
A good reason to avoid quizzes and such on Facebook: Is Your Facebook Profile As Private As You Think?

Fruit Tree Giveaway from LACMA

LACMA giveaway

Artist collective Fallen Fruit kicks off a yearlong project, EATLACMA, with a fruit tree giveaway. Come pick up a free fruit tree along with planting instructions for your garden. This is the first in a series of events, which will include an exhibition, opening in June, and a series of food-related events throughout the year. EATLACMA is a year-long investigation into food, art, culture and politics. EATLACMA's projects consider food as a common ground that explores the social role of art and ritual in community and human relationships.

EATLACMA unfolds seasonally, with artist's gardens planted and harvested on the museum campus, hands-on public events, and a concurrent exhibition, Fallen Fruit Presents The Fruit of LACMA (June 27-November 7, 2010). EATLACMA is curated by Fallen Fruit—David Burns, Matias Viegener and Austin Young-and LACMA curator Michele Urton.

Easy to Serve Grapes

I realized a trick that helps me prepare, store, and serve fruit to the kids. My big problem, say with grapes, is that I buy a lot, then I don't have a big enough container to put it in the refrigerator. I don't want to put it in a bowl because it takes up too much space, and I don't want to take up one of my few large rectangular containers because I prefer to save those for leftovers.

I found that if I wash and remove the stems, they easily fit in a tall, compact juice pitcher or carafe. I can fit a lot of fruit, it keeps well (though admittedly, fruit never lasts long here), it doesn't take up a lot of room in the refrigerator, and it's easy to serve. I think I'll be picking up a few more for the delicious summer months.

Just for the record, I wouldn't try this with delicate berries like strawberries and raspberries which should not be washed before storing. Besides, they do best if they're not tossed around.

For more tips on storing produce, check out Real Simple's tips here.

Free Bag of Groceries from Whole Foods!!

I'm sorry to have found out about this offer too late to share at a reasonable hour. It sounds like a great deal if you know how to fill a bag of groceries with expensive Whole Foods stuff ;-)

Friday, October 13, 2009 at 7AM
"The first 200 customers at Whole Foods in Woodland Hills will win a free bag of groceries."

Whole Foods
21347 Ventura Blvd
Woodland Hills, CA 91364

Avoiding Food Spoilage

My recent method for attempting to avoid having food spoil:

Keep a brief list of foods that are ripe or near expiring in the kitchen (e.g., on the counter or fridge).

For example, I have a lot of ripe pears lying around, but I keep forgetting to use them. I put "pears" on my list, and I'm reminded to have a pear as a snack instead of an orange or crackers. I'm also encouraged to use them in breakfast or a dessert. This worked with my abundance of apples, which turned into a tasty cranberry apple pie, and blueberries, which made their way into my yogurt and the kids' snacks.

Souplantation's Free Breakfast for Kids During Pajama Month

Apparently, Souplantation offers kids a free breakfast during pajama month, with the purchase of an adult meal. I found out about this too late, but I'd love to go to see a bunch of kids at a restaurant in PJs. It just sounds precious!

I overheard someone talking about it, and I couldn't resist finding out more. It looks like there is no current info on the Souplantation website, though they did a press release in 2007.

It turns out that this deal only happens once a year, which was October 18 this year (i.e., yesterday). I guess I'm a day late and a dollar short. So, I guess I'm posting because I was amused. And it's something to look forward to next year ;-)

Bento Box as Art

Do not attempt this at home!

A truly inspiring bento box. I mean, this is art. It must have taken forever to do, and regardless of how much time I had, I could never do it. Ever. But I just love looking at it.

Top Chef's Tom Colicchio's Commercial

I'm an avid Top Chef watcher, so even though he's kind of selling out, I got a kick out of this commercial

Around the Internet: Food

Fancy Cupcake Wrappers - I don't make cupcakes often, but I suspect I will as MetaBoy starts school. It's a great alternative to a giant cake. And with these precious cupcake wrappers made from recycled paper, I don't think I'll be able to resist. (NOTE: some items on this website are for baking (e.g., liners), but others are to be used as decoration only.)


SOS: Your recipe requests answered - Looking for the recipe to a favorite restaurant meal, dessert, or drink? The Los Angeles Times to the rescue with Culinary SOS!! That said, some things are best left to the professionals ;-)

Cocoa Butter, Raw and Orgamic - I wonder if "orgamic" butter is like buying a Rolecks instead of a Rolex?

Politics of the Plate: Selling the Farm - A heartbreaking story about a 144 year old family farm that has to be sold off because being a dairy farmer is more about going into debt that making a living.

"In Vermont, where I live, that translates to a loss of $100 per cow per month. So far this year, 33 farms have ceased operation in this one tiny state. Meanwhile, the price you and I pay for milk in the grocery store has stayed about the same."

It really makes me wonder what's happening to our food supply when small, productive farms run by families willing and able to work are run out of business.

Around the Internet

Are We Farmers Market Failures - Hey, out there! Vote for your favorite farmers' market here. Show how much you love your farmers. And if you live in the Los Angeles area, definitely do this. We're not in the top 20, but we have some spectacular markets! The Santa Monica market on Wednesdays, anyone? Perhaps we're taking for granted how our wonderful weather allows us to have strawberries, tomatoes, avocados, and so many other foods for so many months of the year. But think about how lucky we are, and vote! Now, I'm off to slice up some sweet, juicy watermelon and tuck into some green, yellow, and red tomatoes...mmm...

Starbucks tests new names for stores - A sign of the times: Starbucks is experimenting with avoiding the use of their name in new stores. I never thought I'd see the day...

How to Take Better Baby Photos - Tips on taking better pictures of babies and kids. Some of this is over my head, but I think I still learned something.

Coolio: The Next Julia Child? - LOL...no. Do you even remember Coolio? Well, back when, he got all into food and starred in an online cooking show on My Damn Channel.

Risk of mad cow disease from farmed fish? - There is now concern that eating farmed fish who are fed byproducts rendered from cows might be at risk. So now, who's going to be protecting consumers from this? Because the USDA and the FDA can't handle what they have on their plates so far. And I think we all know how unlikely it is that any corporation or industry will self-regulate.

Free Ice Cream at Milk

I haven't tried it due to dietary constraints, but I hear Milk's ice cream is wonderful. One of these days, we'll all sit down for a taste.

But you all are in luck for this Sunday is National Ice Cream Day.

"Milk is doling out free scoops of its decadent, house-made flavors like banana dulce de leche, mint chocolate chip and strawberry. Just say the secret code phrase--"I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream"--for one scoop in a cone or a cup."

Milk, 7290 Beverly Blvd., Mid-City; 323-939-6455

Sunday July 19 from 8AM-11PM

Via Tasting Table LA

Around the Internet: Food

Quinoa Recipe - I struggle, occasionally, with the wet, heavy quality of cooked quinoa. This is a clever technique fixed that. Finally, I had light, fluffy quinoa that rivaled the texture of cous cous. It does take longer to make this way, so I find it's worth it if I won't be mixing it with something wet (e.g., a meal with a lot of sauce which will wet the grain again).

Hart High Student to Compete in National Cooking Competition - This 17 year old already has an impressive culinary resume. I'm so impressed to see that kind of dedication to anything, especially at that age.

Yes We Can Food - I'm so jealous. I wish we had something like this in L.A. Depending on the month, they make apricot jam, pickles, or tomatoes. Farm fresh food canned during their peak season. Mmm...so jealous.

A Martha Stewart Cartoon...For Kids - Um...is it a good thing?

An unexpected way to boost the economy - Breastfeeding can help bolster the economy by preventing illnesses in infants. Just doing our part to help ;-)

Blue Berries and Green Shopping

Fun stuff this weekend.

We went blueberry picking in Camarillo. Pickings were slim, but it was an interesting experience. A little too hot to be fun, but I like exposing MetaBoy to new food things. And this was definitely new. Blueberries grow on bushes? In the ground? From dirt? A pound of blueberries for $3.50! No, not organic, but I'll let it slide this time. I'll make plans to do this earlier in the season next time.

Afterwards, we stopped by the Camarillo Outlets for some deals.

I always take my shopping bag in my purse. It's small and folds up into nothing, so it's easy. And it means I'm always ready to refuse a shopping bag from stores. I did this when we bought a little something at Banana Republic, and they gave me 10% off. I got a 10% discount for using my own bag!! What a great surprise.

Good on Banana Republic for encouraging shoppers to do the right thing! I wonder if any other stores do this

Better Cake Mix Alternative?

I like baking, but it can be such a daunting task with kids running/crawling in circles around your legs. Making the batter for a cake or cupcake is really quite easy, especially in a food processor). But sometimes, it's more the thought of baking from scratch that's a deal killer. The thought of taking out the flour, baking powder, salt...putting them all away...cleaning up. Blegh!

One of the bigger benefits to home baking is using good ingredients, and knowing that there are no partially hydrogenated fats or high fructose corn syrup lurking in there. As such, while I'm not a fan of cake mixes, I can appreciate what this one offers.

Naturally Nora Cake Mixes

Stars Cake Mix Ingredients: Unbleached Wheat Flour, Sugar, Chocolate Cookies (Wheat Flour, Sugar, Canola Oil, Cocoa, Baking Soda, Salt, Rosemary Extract), Baking Soda, Natural Vanilla Flavor, Cream of Tartar, Salt, Carob Bean Gum, Guar Gum Contains Wheat Produced In A Facility That Also Uses Mllk, Soy and Tree Nuts.

There are currently only 6 reviews on Amazon, but they're all positive. So maybe they taste OK? Possibly, dare I say, good?

Is it the best option? I'd say no. But if you're gonna open a box, this feels like a better option.

I probably won't be using it any time soon since I've got a baking bug right now, and MetaDaddy kindly asked that I stop trying to fatten him up.

Time to fatten the kids up, I suppose ;-)

Via Daily Candy

Prix Fixe at P. F. Chang's

Do you like P. F. Chang's? They've got a prix fixe special: Four course dinner for two for $39.95. The website mentions Valentine's Day, but there's no expiration on the deal. So if you're interested, might be worth a call to your Chang's of choice.

Around the Internet: Food

Bad, bad, naughty food.

The Cookie Cake Pie - This is so over the top. My teeth hurt just looking at it!

Chain Restaurants Engaged in Obesity-Promoting "Waist Race" - Ever had the Cheesecake Factory's Fried Macaroni and Cheese Balls? "With 1,570 calories and 69 grams of saturated fat, you'd be better off eating an entire stick of butter."

If that's not a motivation to cook at home, I don't know what is. To spur on that sentiment, here are 5 things that we don’t have to do in the kitchen.

That said, even if you cook at home, that doesn't mean your "healthy food" is what it claims to be. This article addresses some misleading manufacturer's labels found on chicken, salt substitutes, artificial sweeteners, wheat bread, foods containing fiber, and foods claiming to not contain trans fats. For example,

"roughly one-third of the fresh chicken sold in the U.S. is 'plumped' with water, salt and sometimes a seaweed extract called carrageenan that helps it retain the added water." How does that impact your dinner? "Untreated chicken has about 45 to 60 mgs of sodium per four-ounce serving. So-called enhanced or 'plumped' chicken has between 200 and 400 mgs of sodium per serving, almost as much as a serving of fast-food french fries."

Maybe it's just as well that Jamie Oliver will be putting a U.S. city on a diet.

Recipe: $10 Meals for 4 via NPR

How Low Can You Go? $10 Meals for 4 on NPR - Four recipes submitted by professionals, all ringing in under $10. Personally, I love Jose Andres (a charming Spaniard, though aren't they all ;-), but all of the recipes look good!

From Chef Jose Andres, A Family Favorite For $10

Navy Chef Gets Creative With A $10 Skate Meal

Chef Ming Tsai Makes $10 Dish His Kids Love

The Neelys Get Playful With A $9 Mac 'N' Cheese

And if you continue on to the comments, you'll find hundreds of recipes submitted by readers.

How to Freeze Everything

I've been reading a lot of random things about food lately. Mark Bittman, NY Times columnist and author of How to Cook Everything, has some tips on saving money in the kitchen. Here's how he puts it:

"If I tried to sell you a new appliance that could help you save money, reduce food waste and get meals on the table faster, the only thing you’d ask would be 'How much?'"

Ah, how we take our freezers for granted. Well, his article has some great tips on what foods to freeze and how. Best tip I took away from this: since food doesn't get "better" in the freezer, it should be used in weeks or months, not years.

Here's an accompanying video of him on the Today Show. It's short, amusing, and informative. But you'll get a lot more information from the article.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Around the Internet

Healthy lifestyle triggers genetic changes: study - It turns out it's never to late to change habits for the better. Don't just blame genetics. Do something!!

Sugar Content in Packaged Breakfast Foods - A visual aid. And if you want to check other foods like processed snacks, beverages, and more, click at the links on the top of the page.

Our Milk Money - Here's an interesting website where self-employed parents list their products or services. So with your purchase, you can help support a family. And if you're a parent looking to make some money on the side, this might be a good place to list yourself.

News Map - A cool, if overwhelming, news aggregator.

Blame Poverty, Not Pork, for the Swine Flu - So the article is interesting, but a rather nutty comment stuck out.

"IPCC chair Rajendra Pachauri says we should have two or more meat-free days a week. New York Times food columnist Mark Bittman equates the environmental impacts of livestock production to those of nuclear war. On the loopier side is Paul McCartney’s ex-wife, Heather Mills, whose global warming worries led her to recommend that people switch from cow’s milk to milk from dogs and rats."

OMG! If it's between rats milk and no milk, how about no milk, for goodness' sake!?!

I'm just saying.